Ascend

“Take a seat” – “Have a seat” – “Please be seated” – however you say it … just sit down.  Psalm 1:1 says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the way of scoffers.”  Notice the downward progression ... walking, standing, sitting. It’s a description of the person who first walks in the way of sinfulness – listens to, even accepts, bad advice and counsel contrary to Scripture; the next downward move is standing with evil doers – loitering, hanging around those who are casual or passive about Godly truth; finally comes the settling in of beliefs contrary to Scripture - having become comfortable in God-less living.  Bottom line – no blessing, no happiness, no lasting peace is promised.  Perhaps today, in your life, you are walking, standing or sitting in ways that are leading to destruction.  Stop! Look! Listen! to “thus says the LORD” and begin today the ascent to true blessedness!

The Invitation

Although we do not have one now, over the course of our fifty years we have have had several pet dogs. One of the first was a Pekinese named Majestic ... I called her Jestic. At that time in my life, I truly believed she was a majestic companion. Not sure I realized it in that season of my life but that is a great Bible word! David writes, "O LORD, our Lord, how majestic and glorious and excellent is Your Name in all the earth! You have displayed Your splendor above the heavens." (Psalm 7:1 AMP). My little dog may have brought great joy to me in her playful antics but nothing - near or dear - compares to the majesty and glory of The Creator. I dare say few of us have failed to walk out into the night and observe the starry hosts and not be stunned even awe-struck at the beauty of the heavens. The same divine and artistic Creator knows my name, the number of hairs on my head, a word before it reaches my lips, the exact number of heartbeats of all my days - yes, that's the same One Who longs to be in relationship with me! How mind-boggling is that! He tells me, "seek Me and find Me ... seek Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13). The Lord Most High, God of Great Majesty invites me and you to seek Him, to find Him, to know Him. It really is the invitation of all invitations!

Water Well

A popular venue in the heat of summer is a water park! One thing that makes it so unique is that most of its water is ... moving. Creatively using flumes or waves or buckets or underground nozzles, those who visit a water park are guaranteed an exhilarating time of refreshment. Consider, however, how useless a water park would be, however, without water. Wisdom from God is, "One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered." (Proverbs 11:24-25 ESV). While we are commanded to be generous with our material wealth, there is perhaps a more far-reaching stewardship for every Believer - that is, to refresh others. No doubt, those water parks have a strong source or reservoir of water; so must those who are serious about being refreshed themselves as well as a continual refreshment to others. I suspect, however, many times we are somewhat disconnected from the True Water because of our neglect to spend time in His Presence. Luke 5:16-17 tell us Jesus would "withdraw to desolate places and pray ... and the power of the Lord was with Him to heal." Now, if Jesus - Son of God, God in the flesh - needed those times of communion with The Father for effectiveness, how wise are we to suppose we do not? One of my favorite examples of refreshment in Scripture comes from 2 Timothy: "May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me ... when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me" (V.16-18). We know little but a lot of this one named Onesiphorus - he was one who encouraged-refreshed Paul; it wasn't just a casual oh-by-the-way sort of refreshment - no, he sought-out the apostle and watered him well. How well are we watering those who find themselves in a dry thirsty place or season? Do not neglect your time with The Lord in study, prayer and worship ... let The Living Water refresh you then let that Water flow through you to others ... water well.

Do Not Linger

One of my favorite retirement past-times is a leisurely day with a friend: making a few shop-stops, having a good meal - I call it ... a'junkin' day. God’s mercy is seen in Scripture from cover-to-cover, but the first writing of the Hebrew "chemal" – root word meaning mercy – is found in the account of Lot, Abraham’s nephew at the pending destruction of Sodom. “As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, ‘Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the punishment of the city.’ But he lingered. So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.” (Genesis 19:15-16). Lot was not in a hurry - he lingered! A portion of Copperhill, Tennessee is in Georgia and another portion is in Tennessee; You can literally straddle a line, having one foot in Georgia and one foot in Tennessee! A divided heart is a serious spiritual dilemma. It’s impossible to sincerely fear and serve a holy God while [at the same time] embracing worldly idols – anything put ahead of Christ.  God continuously extends His mercy, kindness, patience, love, compassion ... yet we linger to obey Him. He will not always tarry – the day of our casual lingering will end.  Joshua boldly proclaimed, “Choose this day whom you will serve … As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15).  How I love those junkin' days of lingering here-and-there; such a time of hesitantly lingering to be what God desires us to be is dangerously shorter than we can know. Be wise ... do not linger.

Stay Stupid

Of course, we know we shouldn’t call others stupid, but stupid (senselessness) does overtake each of us at times.  The secret is to keep it a secret as best you can: it’s "better to keep your mouth  closed and thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt." Can you believe, of all people in history, King Solomon felt stupid! "Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man. I neither learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the holy." (Proverbs 30:2-3).  Interestingly, his feeling of inadequate wisdom only pressed him to seek God more. Solomon struggled to avoid vanity and pride, which always hinders knowing God. What a model for the wise!  Now, let’s not promote stupidity as the world defines it, but remain humble and teachable unto God. As inappropriate and ridiculous as it may sound, spiritually-speaking … let’s stay stupid!